Legacy 1x01: Pilot
by Lady Dawson
Summary: Complete. New series starring Wyatt and Chris. Two new girls, Susan Dawson and Brooke Murphy, move in next door who are more than they seem. And who is this new guy Brandon James and how is he connected to Susan's past? Takes place 18 years after Charmed.
1. Sorrows

**Legacy: Pilot**

by Lady Dawson

Chapter One: Sorrows

Susan Dawson stared at the two freshly piled mounts that held her brother and mother now. Only the markers showed that the two people she cared about most, her family, had been. Tears sparkled in her eyes as Susan pulled her black trench coat tighter around her, sniffling slightly as she pushed a sheet of her brown hair behind her.

"Mom," she whispered, squatting down beside them. "Ryan . . . why'd you have to die? Why did you leave me here all alone?" Sobs emerged from her as she bowed her head.

Not that she'd expected them to, but nobody answered her questions. Only the howling wind that blew through Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, showed any sign that anybody had heard her.

With a small sigh, Susan thought back to the day when she had lost her family. It had been a day like any other. Her mother had cooked dinner and they'd gone out to visit Uncle Teddy, who lived on the other side of town. They did that every Saturday night. Her uncle was a comedy, laughing fellow with three kids he was raising on his own. Alex, the oldest, was twenty-one, two years older than Susan. Marie was twenty and the youngest, Mark, was nineteen, Susan's own age.

And Ryan's . . .

They had shared one birth, the two of them, Ryan only slightly her elder. Their mother, Celandine Dawson, had certainly had a handful raising two children by herself, but she'd managed. Certainly there had been rough spots, but they had managed to get by. The three of them had been so close for so long that Susan found it frightening being so alone.

The car accident had taken everything away . . . her family . . . her mother . . . her brother, her half-self . . . and in a way, it had destroyed part of Susan as well.

Susan couldn't remember much about the accident. Her memories of that night were vague, almost as if they had been put there by somebody else. What she did remember was that she'd somehow managed to escape the accident, unscathed except for a few scraps and bruises. How could she have survived such a traumatic incident with hardly even a mark to show for it? she wondered. Even the doctors remarked on it.

"You're one very lucky girl, Miss Dawson," he told her as he stitched up a cut on her forehead. "A very lucky girl. An accident like that . . . you should have more wounds than a couple of stitches."

But he was wrong. The injuries that she'd received weren't on the surface; they were engraved in her heart.

Feeling a hand touch her shoulder, Susan looked around and stood up, wiping away her tears. "Hi, Brooke," she said, her voice quavering.

Brooke Murphy stood behind her, looking just as melancholy as she did, her brown hair tied up into a bun as she wrapped her arms around Susan, who hugged her back. The two girls clung to each other, united by their grief.

"Come on, you need to go home, sweetie," Brooke whispered, leading her away from her mother and twin. "You need to get a shower, have something to eat, get more than a few hours sleep." Susan said nothing to her dead brother's girlfriend and her best friend and almost sister as Brooke pulled her to her car and gently pushed her into the passenger seat. "You've been out here for almost twenty-four hours, you're freezing. See, your hands are trembling."

"I'm not cold," Susan replied softly, staring out the window as the streets of Chippewa Falls flew by. "I don't feel much of anything right now. Not cold, not hunger, not even fear." Brooke looked over at her and Susan turned towards her. "You know, it's like I'm dreaming . . . you know how you have those dreams that seem so real that when you wake up, you don't know what to believe?"

Brooke nodded, her brown eyes glistening. "I know, Sue, I know," she whispered. "But your mom and Ryan are still here, you know. In your heart," she added with a small, weak smile. "They would want you to move on with your life."

"How am I supposed to go on with my life if I can't even think straight?" Susan demanded. "How am I supposed to live when my twin brother is dead and my mother, too! They were my family, Brooke! I loved them!" Her voice rose with every sentence and by the time she finished, she was screaming and crying at the same time.

Pulling over to the side of the road, Brooke hugged Susan as she cried onto her best friend's shoulder. "We're gonna get through this, you know?" she whispered as Susan wept. "Together, somehow we're going to survive. And that's how Ryan would have wanted it."

"I know," Susan sobbed. "I know . . ."

--

Brandon James stood before the Council of Elders, anticipation hovering through him as he watched Them file into the heavenly room. If They were trying to make him feel as though he was in trouble, Brandon though, They were doing an excellent job.

"We have been monitoring Susan Dawson's behaviour ever since the deaths of her family," one of Them said. If Brandon recalled correctly, his name was Roan and he was one of the Elders who'd survived the Titan attack twenty-some odd years ago. "It has come to our attention that she will not long survive this heartache. Not without help."

"Which is why we need you to go to her and guide her," an Elder by the name of Curtis told Brandon. "Help her find her path to happiness again. Only by doing that can she finally fulfil her destiny. She is a witch and a Whitelighter, but unless she can find her way back, she may also be lost."

"You want _me_ to go and help Susan?" Brandon demanded, incredulous. "Do you really think that's a good idea, considering who I am?"

"Which is why you will not be going as who you really are, you will be going as Brandon James," Roan said firmly. "Never reveal your identity, because then the consequences of that are too ghastly to discuss. If she realises that she will be able to talk to you, then she will never be able to move on completely."

"Still—"

"We understand your concerns, Brandon," another Elder named William said gently, calling him by his new alias. "But I feel that these matters are best solved with someone that a person feels comfortable with. The bond between you and Miss Dawson is strong, even in death. I'm certain that it will help."

Brandon swallowed, worried suddenly for his new charge. Was it really as bad as They were making it out to be? "How is she? Is she really doing so badly with this?" he asked. "I mean, Brooke is still there with her, shouldn't she be able to help?"

"Miss Murphy is also deeply affected by Ryan's death. Both of them are grieving equally. This is why you must help both of them move on with their grief, Brandon. They will be graduating soon and moving to California to go to college there. You know who waits in California for Susan."

Brandon's heart sank when he realised what the Elder meant. "Peter Connelly," he said, his tone filled with distaste.

**--Opening Credits--**

Title Song: "Chariot" by Gavin Degraw

Drew Fuller as Chris Halliwell

Wes Ramsey as Wyatt Halliwell

Michelle Trachtenberg as Susan Dawson

Anne Hathaway as Brooke Murphy

and Hayden Christensen as Brandon James


	2. New Neighbours

**Legacy: Pilot**

by Lady Dawson

Chapter Two: New Neighbours

It was about two in the afternoon when the door to the Halliwell brothers' apartment slammed open. Chris Halliwell, age twenty, glanced up from the history homework that he was doing to glare, slightly annoyed, at his perky older brother who'd just barged in.

"You know, there's this that people actually do, it's called studying," he remarked. "Ever hear of it? It's where we look at books and notes and attempt to drive as much information as we can _without interruption_."

"Well, you can take a break, little brother," Wyatt replied. At two years older than Chris, he stood a few inches taller and had blond curls framing a handsome face and crystal blue eyes. The two brothers hardly looked as though they were related. While Wyatt took after their father Leo, Chris had inherited his mother's features, right to the dark hair. The only thing that his father had passed down, beside the Whitelighter genes, was his green eyes, in the exact image of Leo's own.

"No, I can't, I've got too much stuff to study for and I've got that exam first thing tomorrow."

"Only you would do summer classes. Summer is supposed to be fun, you know, where we can actually relax and take a break from the stressful year that we've had." Wyatt grinned. "Anyway, check it out, bro, there's two really hot chicks moving in next door."

Chris rolled his eyes; ever since Wyatt's last break-up with Whitney, his on and off again girlfriend since high school, he'd been checking out girls at every turn. This was just what he needed, two more prospective girlfriends for his brother to get hung over with.

"So what?" He turned back to his studying, which was instantly orbed out of his hands by Wyatt. "Hey!"

Chris attempted to orb it back to him, but Wyatt managed to keep a firm hand on it. "No way, Chris. Listen if you put the studying down for a minute, go with me over there to introduce ourselves, then I will let you study to your heart's content."

That immediately got Chris's attention; if he could get Wyatt to leave him alone for awhile, then maybe he'd be able to get some real studying done. "You promise?" he asked.

Wyatt held up his hands. "Witches' honour," he said solemnly. Chris sighed, and gave in.

"Fine, but give me my book back," Chris said, holding out his hand. Immediately, the book orbed back into his hand and he set it down onto the table with his notes. "Let me go get the chicken casserole that I made for them yesterday."

Staring after his brother as Chris headed to the kitchen, Wyatt scratched his head in confusion. "How'd you know that we would be having some new, beautiful female companions in the building?" he inquired.

"Landlord mentioned that the place had rented out to two college girls moving from Wisconsin," Chris said absently. "He didn't say much else about them, though."

"And you didn't mention it to me?" Wyatt feigned wounded. "You're hurting me, bro. Why couldn't you at the very least just tell me that we were going to be having some new neighbours, if you weren't going to mention that they were girls? I could've been caught in the open—"

"What, walking in your underwear?" Chris smirked. "You do that anyway, Wy, and no girl is going to stop you from doing that."

"Never know what's gonna happen," Wyatt said with a shrug. "Come on, let's get going already. Anyway, who says that they're both for me? Maybe I was looking at somebody for you."

"Oh, boy, here we go," Chris sighed. He hadn't exactly gone out with anybody ever since the incident last September when his girlfriend turned out to be an assassin witch hired to kill him and Wyatt. Needless to say, the break-up hadn't exactly gone well, as they'd ended up having to vanquish her.

His Aunt Phoebe had been a big help with that, getting over his demonic girlfriend. After all, she was the one who'd been married to a demon before _and_ been Queen of the Underworld because of said demon for a time.

"How long is it going to take you to get over the demon?" Wyatt asked casually as they left the apartment. "It's been ages, Chris. Please get over her and move on with your life."

"I have," Chris retorted. "Look, Wy, I am over Bianca, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna go after ever girl that strays my path. That's your job." Wyatt punched his arm, but he was grinning. "If I meet a girl that I like, then I'll ask her out, but I'm not going to go through girl to girl until I meet her."

"Sometimes, I just don't understand you, bro," Wyatt sighed as he rang the doorbell.

"And you're never going to, big brother," Chris said with a grin. They heard some running towards the door and it opened, revealing a young woman around Chris's age, maybe younger. She had long brown hair and brown eyes, nearly as tall as he was.

"Hi, can I help you?" she asked, smiling at the pair of them.

"Uh, we just came over to introduce ourselves," Wyatt said smoothly, grinning flirtatiously. "We're your new neighbours. I'm Wyatt Halliwell, this is my brother Chris." Chris smiled pleasantly and the girl smiled.

"Hi, it's nice to meet you," she said, opening the door wider. "I'm Brooke Murphy. Come on in." They entered the apartment, where it was cluttered with boxes upon boxes. "Sorry about the mess," she said, unfazed. "I was just starting to get around to unpacking."

"No problem," Chris said, handing over the casserole. "This is for you and your sister. Figured that you wouldn't have made it to the market just yet."

"Oh, thank you!" Brooke smiled. "It smells great! And it's my best friend, not my sister."

Chris winced slightly. "Sorry."

"It's okay, people make that mistake all the time," Brooke said simply as she took the casserole into the kitchen, setting it on the counter. "So, are you guys from around here?"

"Yeah, we grew up here," Wyatt said. "There's a manor across town, an old Victorian that's been in our family for generations. Since . . . what, Chris, the early 1900's?"

"It was rebuilt in 1906 after the San Francisco earthquake," Chris said almost immediately. "The original structure was destroyed in the earthquake."

"That's cool," Brooke said, but her eyes were on Wyatt and her smile was just as embarrassing as his brother's. Chris suppressed the urge to roll his eyes; apparently, he'd won her over. "You should definitely take Susan over there some time. She loves old houses."

"Who?"

"My friend, Susan," Brooke said, finally tearing her gaze away from Wyatt to look at Chris. "She's in her room now, unpacking. Knowing her, she's not going to leave it until the boxes are completely empty."

"Yeah, well, it's better than you leaving it in boxes for three months before you decide to finally start putting your stuff away," a female voice spoke up. Chris turned.

There was a young woman standing behind him, around eighteen or nineteen years of age. She had light brown hair that fell around her shoulders and halfway down her back. Her blue eyes were vivid and bright, though some shadow lurked behind them, as if she were concealing some hidden pain.

Still, her smile was pleasant enough as she looked towards him and Wyatt. "Hi, I'm Susan Dawson."

"This is Wyatt and Chris Halliwell," Brooke said, batting her eyes at Wyatt. Chris suppressed the urge to groan and saw Susan roll her eyes towards the ceiling, shaking her head. "They're our new neighbours._ And_ they brought us dinner tonight."

"Thank goodness," Susan said, letting out a breath. "I am getting _so_ sick of takeout." Chris laughed and Wyatt grinned.

Brooke looked wounded. "What is so bad about takeout?" she complained and Susan raised an eyebrow.

"Takeout on it's own isn't bad, but after three months of it, it does get a little bit old, Brooke," she commented. Before Brooke could comment, however, Susan turned back to the brothers with a genuine smile. "Thank you very much for the dinner."

"It's no problem," Chris said with a shrug. "Just a chicken casserole that I whipped up. Landlord said that you guys were moving in, so I just though I'd make something. Figured you wouldn't have the kitchen set up just yet."

"If Brooke has her way, then I won't be able to get near the kitchen for seven months," Susan replied dryly. "I'm grateful to you."

Brooke scowled at her. "Keep it up and they're going to get the wrong impression about me. You Dawsons are so bad; it must be a family trait."

"You almost married into my family," Susan responded.

"And thankfully I wasn't able to," Brooke said almost airily. Then she froze, as if realising what she'd just said. Chris watched as the shocked look on Susan's face turned to torment and then quickly to anger before moving on to grief. It happened all in the space of about five seconds. "Susan, I—"

"I'm going for a walk," Susan said. She looked towards him and Wyatt. "Excuse me, gentlemen." Her tone suggested that she was trying very hard not to explode.

Brooke bit her lip as Susan walked out from the room. Chris watched her go, slightly confused as to what was going on. From the look on his brother's face, he didn't understand it, either and Wyatt turned to Brooke.

"What was all of that about?" he asked her.

"It's a long story," Brooke said quietly. She looked as though she were mentally kicking herself. "And it's probably something that Susan should tell you in her own time. She's just going through a tough time right now and I kind of brought up some bad memories by saying that. I'm an idiot." She sighed and glanced towards where Susan had gone.

"Should we go after her?" Chris asked, looking back to where Susan had vanished. Even though he had only just met her, he still felt worried about her. "I mean, San Francisco's a big city and she won't know where she's going . . ."

"Don't worry, she'll be okay. She could find herself in the middle of a desert with no map or street signs and still manage to find herself back to civilisation." Brooke grinned. "It's _me_ that has no sense of direction."

"Sounds like someone else that I know," Chris muttered, earning himself a glare from Wyatt. But it was true; the elder Halliwell couldn't find his sense of direction even if he had a map, a tour guide, and a Map Quest guide. "Well, I guess we should let you settle in." He gave his brother a look.

"Yeah, I have to get to work anyway," Wyatt said, glancing down at his watch. "I'm gonna be late again." His brother worked over at the clinic while going to school for his doctorate.

"Right." Brooke looked slightly disappointed that Wyatt was leaving, but overlooked it. "Well, hopefully we'll see you guys again. If Susan forgives me, that is."

"She will," Chris told her. "Just make it up to her in some way. There's a really good ice cream parlour down the street if she likes that. You could treat her there."

Brooke's eyes lit up. "She never turns down an opportunity for chocolate ice cream," she said happily. "What's the name of it?"

"Marius's Old-Fashioned Ice Cream," Chris answered. "It's right at the corner of Second and First. You can't miss it." This earned him a smile from both Brooke and Wyatt and he smiled, shaking his head. "Should I write it down for you?"

"Probably a good idea," Brooke said. She was laughing as she retrieved a piece of paper and a pen from her purse, handing it to him.

Chris wrote down the address and name of the parlour. "If she doesn't come home real soon, just come and get me, I'll go look for her. It's right next door in 4C, okay?"

"Yeah, all right. Thank you."

It wasn't until they'd left and were heading towards their apartment that Wyatt had the gall to say, "You like her, don't you?"

Managing not to clock him, Chris said, "I don't know what you're talking about. I don't like Brooke. Not that way."

"Not Brooke," Wyatt said, rolling his eyes. "Susan."

With a sigh, Chris glanced towards the streets of San Francisco, wondering if she was okay. "She's hurt, Wy. Something happened to her fairly recently and I'm just concerned about her. It does not mean that I like her in that way."

"Whatever you say, little brother. Whatever you say."


	3. Demon Attack

**Legacy: Pilot**

by Lady Dawson

Chapter Three: Demon Attack

Susan was fuming as she left the apartment, taking all of her will not to slam it shut. Tears were threatening to spill down her cheeks as she headed out into San Francisco, not caring where she was going or if she was going to come back. Right now, she didn't want to be _anywhere_ near Brooke Kathryn Murphy.

_How dare she?_ she thought as she stalked down the street, ignoring the angry looks that she got from a few of the bystander as she didn't bother getting out of their way. _How _dare_ she say something when it's barely been three months since Ryan died? I know she didn't really mean it, but it still hurt. And how can she possibly be moving on so fast? Was it true, then, what he told me the night that he died? That she'd had an affair with what's-his-name from the football team? That she was going to break up with him and return the engagement ring that he gave to her? _

She had no answers at the moment and the only thing she could do was go back and ask Brooke about that. Ryan _had_ told her that they were breaking up, but she didn't want to believe it, because she loved Brooke as she would a sister, but now she was starting to face facts. What if it was true?

"I'm sorry, Ry," she whispered, burying her face into her hands as she sank onto a park bench, tears starting to roll down her face. "I'm so sorry I didn't believe you. I just . . . I couldn't."

Sobs emerged from her and she curled up onto the bench, her shoulders shaking. She knew that people were passing by her and whispering, but she didn't care. All she wanted right now was to let out the emotions that she'd be hiding since March. Let out all the fear, frustration, pain, anger, and anguish that she'd be holding in.

It seemed like forever until the tears finally stopped coming. Susan sniffled and lifted her head. Dusk was starting to fall and she was in a new city with no way to get home. Angry or not, she had no intention of spending her first night in a new city on a park bench.

Just as she stood up and was about to turn around to go home, she felt rather than heard someone approach her. She stopped, instincts on high alert as she stood still, trying to figure out who—or better yet, _what_—was behind her.

She didn't have to wait long. No sooner had she froze, a knife was suddenly pressed against the base of her throat. "Don't move, witch," a slithering voice hissed. Susan felt her throat constrict as she felt the cool metal against it. "Just surrender and I'll make this quick."

"Sorry," Susan replied, keeping her fear under control. "I'm fresh out of white flags."

Plunging deep inside herself, into the depths of her power, Susan summoned up the powers of the weather, her fingertips starting to crackle with electricity.

Not hesitating, she managed to scramble out of the way just as an energy ball came flying out of the demon's hands. It _barely_ missed her and just barely. She smelled the scent of burnt hair as it whizzed by, hitting a car that was parked nearby. The car jolted and the alarm went off, alerting everyone in the area that something was not right.

The demon cursed and glanced at Susan, who had lightning at hand, ready to dispose of him. "You've won this first round, but I'll be back," he growled at her. Without wasting a minute, he shimmered out, leaving Susan alone in the park.

Quick as she could, Susan hurried out, not wanting to be caught there with the car alarm blaring—jeez, those things were loud and annoying—probably bringing with it about a dozen spectators. It was only when she was about two blocks away did she slow down to a walk, staring down at her hands again.

There hadn't been a demon attack since her mother and brother had been killed. She had wondered why they had, but guessed that they'd just been biding their time. And now they'd followed her here to California.

Susan was a witch, like her brother was and like her father. Her mother had half-Whitelighter, the daughter of a Whitelighter and his charge. She, too, was a Whitelighter and had charges, one of them her best friend, a witch, and the other Susan and Ryan's father, also a witch. But he had turned evil, she claimed, some dark force consumed him, forcing him down the path of demons. He worked for them now, as did his wife, who had once upon a time been Celandine's best friend.

One would think that after that, Celandine would give up on the Craft altogether, but on the contrary. She taught her children everything she knew about magic and helped them control their powers. Susan developed the power of weather manipulation and precognition. Ryan had been a conjuror and could turn invisible. Together, they had fought demons, joined eventually by Brooke, the daughter of a witch and a nymph. Brooke's unlikely heritage had gained her the ability to control the earth element and telepathy.

And it was like that for almost three years, until just recently. When Ryan died, the demons stopped attacking for some reason. Susan had thought that with one of their trio gone, they would attack more frequently, hoping to eliminate them as well.

But this demon was the first that had attacked in the three months that Ryan had been gone. Not only that, but he said that he would be back. Which meant that the war was about to continue.

Susan sighed as she looked towards the horizon, her blue eyes narrowing with determination. "I am the daughter of Celandine, sister of Ryan, and heir of Agatha Cromwell," she said quietly. "You can try if you want, but I'm not going to give up. Your kind are not getting me."

Even as she climbed the steps to her apartment, Susan felt the sense that she was being watched. She glanced around though, still sensing someone, but climbed the stairs. If they were going to attack, then they would eventually. Soon or later, anyway.

Moments later, the door to apartment 4B opened and Susan Dawson walked inside, the door shutting behind her.

--

Brandon James leaned against the tree outside of the apartment building which was his new charge's home, watching her stop, turn, her eyes scanning around him. Holding his breath, Brandon wondered if she had sensed him watching her. He hadn't anticipated her meeting him this early.

But to his immense relief, Susan turned back and completed her journey up the stairs and vanished into her apartment. Releasing a sigh of relief, Brandon glanced both ways and orbed out back to his own place.

The crummy little apartment he had rented was worth a lot less than what he was paying it for and had only a bed and a small kitchen in it. The door barely even locked, which was only a bonus to burglars. Not that he had anything worth stealing.

"She doesn't look like she needs much help to me," he grumbled towards the ceiling, sitting up straight. Almost immediately, he heard the annoying jingling in his ears and winced. "Okay, okay! I get it. Jeez."

Obviously, They were just as worried as he was about the demon attack earlier that evening. If demons had tracked her to California, which was the same state that Peter Connelly was in, then they were probably doing it on his orders. It was the only reason that they had gone after the twins in Wisconsin. Susan and Ryan weren't altogether powerful on their own, but together . . . their powers joined together were almost as powerful as the Charmed Ones. The fact that they had an empathic link probably helped matters a little.

But now that Ryan was dead, then they shouldn't be going after her at all, not unless Peter wanted her out of the way completely.

Still, she'd met Chris and Wyatt Halliwell. Once they found out that the two girls were witches—and once Susan and Brooke found out that they were _that_ Halliwell—then he didn't think that even Peter would be thick enough to go after them. Not whilst they were under the protection of the Halliwells.

Of course, when investigating the mind of demons, never go to Brandon James for advice. Because he was usually, in fact almost always, wrong about what the demons did or didn't do.

Which meant that they would be attacking Susan again. Soon.

--

Brooke looked up, almost relieved, as she heard the door open and Susan walked in, looking harassed and even worried. "Oh, there you are!" she exclaimed, her eyes flickering over Susan, whose hair was dishevelled and there was a hint of something red on the neck of her shirt. "I was so worried about you, where have you been?" Brooke suddenly realised what was on her shirt. "Hang on . . . is that blood?"

"Demon attacked," Susan said shortly as she walked past Brooke to her bedroom. Brooke followed her, her ears ringing as Susan walked straight into her room, which was surprisingly unpacked, considering they'd only arrived six hours ago and she'd been missing for two.

Walking over to the desk, Susan pulled out the chair and yanked open the drawer, revealing a large, leather-bound green book that looked ancient. Susan pulled it out, sitting down onto her bed with it.

"A demon attacked?" Brooke repeated, not at all sure that she had understood. She bit her lip. "But they haven't attacked in months . . . I thought they finally got tired of us, when . . ." She thought it better not to finish that sentence.

Susan lifted her head. "Brooke, I can't talk to you right now, okay? I have to find out who this demon was before he comes back again." She turned back to the Book of Shadows in her hands, flipping through the old pages.

Feeling as though she'd reached out and struck her, Brooke knew that she'd deserved it. "I'm sorry, okay?" she whispered. Suddenly, Chris's idea about treating Susan to an ice cream didn't seem like such a good idea at the moment. "I didn't mean it."

"Did you cheat on him?"

Brooke froze as Susan spoke the words, feeling shock rise through her. Had Ryan told her . . . about what she'd done? She'd felt so guilty about it, but it was back when she and Ryan had been having some problems. It seemed so stupid now, the fights between them. Just silly stuff, like what colours they were going to have for the wedding and how many people to invite. Normal, silly stuff that every couple argued over.

She didn't even know why she started sleeping with Landon, just that she had. If she'd known what was going to happen, then she never would have done it. Even if Ryan were still alive, she wished that she wouldn't have done it. It was the wrong way to deal with their problems and only ended in them breaking up on Ryan's death day.

Brooke had never told Susan about it because she had been having enough problems without dumping her own into her lap. But it had never occurred to her that she might have known. How could she not? After all, Susan was Ryan's twin. They told each other everything.

"What?" she whispered.

"Did you?" Susan asked, looking up at her. Brooke couldn't read the look in her eyes, but something made her unable to look directly at Susan.

"Did he tell you?" Brooke swallowed slightly, forcing herself to look back at the witch. "Did Ryan tell you?"

"What do you think?" Susan asked coldly. She looked back at the Book, totally ignoring Brooke. Then she jumped to her feet, blue eyes blazing.

"I can't believe I actually defended you, Brooke! You know what, I told him that it couldn't be true because you were a decent, warm-hearted person! The one day that I should've listened to him, believed him, I didn't because of you! And now you're going after our next door neighbour three months—_three months—_after my brother died! How dare you! I can't believe that you can even look at me after what you did!" Brooke whimpered as lightning struck outside, a sign that Susan's temper was out of hand. She was usually such serenely-tempered, but there were times when she really lost it. This was one of those times. Ryan was the only one who could calm her down in this state. Everyone else just had to wait for her temper to burn out. "How can you even go after some guy after what you did to my brother?!"

"I was not the one making the moves!" Brooke shot back, defensive. Susan stared at her. "Okay, I was not the _only_ one making the moves." She sat down into a chair, suppressing a sigh.

"How can you move on so fast?" Susan whispered. Even though she wasn't yelling, her tone said everything.

"Because he would want me to be happy, despite what I did," Brooke whispered, holding back tears. "He would want both of us to be happy. You know that and I know that. I could wait three months or three years and that fact isn't going to change. But the point is that for whatever reason, fate may be pointing me down this path." She shrugged. "Just like it's pointing you down Chris's."

"Don't turn this onto me, Brooke," Susan warned her. "And what is that supposed to mean?"

"It means you should take a chance," Brooke answered, standing up and leaving her room before Susan could reply.


	4. You're a Witch!

**Legacy: Pilot**

by Lady Dawson

Chapter Four: You're a Witch!

It was half past nine when Chris walked out onto the balcony, balancing a cup of coffee with one hand and his books in his other hand. Wyatt, despite his promise, had come in a half hour ago from work and insisted on making some popcorn and watching a movie. How anybody could mess up microwave popcorn was beyond Chris, but his brother still managed to do it.

"He's got no respect for study time," he grumbled as he sat down at the table and chairs, spreading out his books across the table, taking a sip of coffee. Glancing up as he heard a door open, he was about to snap at Wyatt for disturbing him when he realised it came from next door.

Looking over at the balcony next to theirs, he saw Susan come out, carrying a book in her hands. It looked vaguely familiar, but he couldn't put his finger on it. Not that he cared a whole lot, he was more worried about the girl carrying it.

He was relieved that she'd made it home okay, but she looked as if she'd been crying. Her eyes were bloodshot and her hair was dishevelled. And, as Chris looked closer, he saw the unmistakable sign of blood on her shirt.

Chris cautiously got to his feet, not wanting to scare her. "Susan?" he asked softly.

As he expected, she hadn't noticed she wasn't alone and she jumped a mile, the book in her hands landing on the floor, opened in the middle. "OH!"

"Sorry," Chris apologised. "Are you okay?" She nodded, trying to catch her breath and he felt guilty for scaring her. "Are you sure? You look . . ." Chris paused, trying to figure out how to phrase it, because she looked like she had been attacked or worse.

"I'm fine," Susan assured him. "Don't worry, it's nothing that I can't handle myself."

Chris sighed, abandoning his studying again and carefully judging the length between the two ledges, jumped over his balcony to hers. She looked at him, startled, picking up the book that she had dropped.

"Susan, I may not know you very well, but that doesn't mean I don't care," he told her. "And I can very easily see that something's going on and I'll have you know that I have the reputation for being the most stubborn member of the Halliwell family. Which means I'm not leaving until you tell me what's going on." He folded his arms across his chest.

With a small, rueful smile, Susan sat down, setting the book face down beside her. Chris joined her in another chair, looking straight into her blue eyes.

"It's nothing, just stupid stuff going on with Brooke," she said. Chris gave her a look and she gave up. "She and I just had this fight and . . . she did some stuff back in Wisconsin that I'm not exactly happy with her about."

"I'm guessing that what she said this afternoon didn't exactly help matters much?" Susan glanced at him. "When she said that, what exactly did she mean?" Chris knew that he was prying, but he knew he couldn't help her unless he knew what was going on.

Susan was silent for such a long time that he thought she wasn't going to answer. But then she spoke.

"Ryan was my twin brother. But we were more than that. Best friends until the end. It was just the two of us against the world. Most people didn't let their children anywhere near us because we were born out of wedlock. Thought they might get funny ideas or something." She shook her head. "But when we met Brooke, she was different. I mean, she accepted us for who we were. And suddenly, we were accepted by the community at whole for once. And then she and Ryan fell in love.

"It was the greatest epic romance of the twenty-first century, I still say. They were two totally different people. I never thought it would last. But last year, just when we were starting our senior year, Ryan did the most amazing thing. He asked her to marry him."

Susan paused in her story, her blue eyes glistening slightly. She had been staring far away, but now she looked into Chris's eyes.

"By then," she said softly. "I was best friends with Brooke, too. She was like my sister. And now they were going to get married. Brooke was actually going to be my sister, for real."

"So what happened?" Chris asked cautiously. He didn't want to pry too far, otherwise she might close up and he didn't want that to happen. Susan was a nice girl and he'd like to be friends with her.

A depressed look came across Susan's face and she sighed loudly, about to talk when a sound came from his and Wyatt's apartment. Susan jumped to her feet, alert, when Brooke flying out of the apartment, dressed in a sleeveless shirt and pyjama bottoms.

"What was that, what's going on?" she said, sounding as though she'd just woken up, though it was only nine.

"CHRIS!" Wyatt yelled. Not wasting a second, Chris jumped the balconies again, plunging into his apartment. He didn't take notice that both girls had followed him, racing into the apartment at his heels until he saw the demon throw an energy ball at them.

"DUCK!" he yelled. Susan dived sideways, out of the way, but Brooke wasn't so lucky. She got hit in the shoulder by one and went down.

Wyatt yelled when he saw Brooke get hit. Susan turned and saw her friend lying on the ground, her eyes going wide. Chris had no time to think; he flicked his wrists, attempting to blow the demon up from the inside, but to his shock, the demon remained intact.

"Your powers don't work on me, witch," he replied. "Even a son of a Charmed One can't vanquish everything."

"Huh?" Susan looked in shock towards them. "Son of a _Charmed One_?" Her eyes were wide. "You guys are _that_ Halliwell?"

Chris froze when he realised what she'd just said. "What do you mean 'that Halliwell' . . ." he began, but realisation hit him in full. "Wait a minute, you're a witch!"

Susan, about to reply, grabbed him and yanked him behind the island of the kitchen. A second later, an unconscious Brooke and Wyatt orbed in next to them.

"Will somebody want to explain what's going on?" he demanded, looking between Brooke and Susan as he started healing her. "How did you two get over here, anyway?"

"Through the window," Susan and Chris said at the same time, nodding towards the balcony that they'd come through.

Wyatt rolled his eyes as the golden glow started to fade. "Great, just what I need, another smart-aleck," he replied in a resigned voice. Susan giggled as Brooke sat up, groaning slightly. He helped her into a sitting position just as another energy ball hit the island, making them jump.

Brooke looked at Susan. "Is that the same demon that you fought before?" she asked. Susan nodded.

"You can't hide from me forever, witches!" the demon shouted. "Don't worry, Charmed sons, I'm not after you. Just hand over the girl witch and I'll leave peacefully. It's not you that my master wants, it's her."

Susan looked incredulous. "Is he talking about me or you?" she asked, glancing at Brooke.

"I'll add that on my things to ask him when we have him over to tea," Brooke snapped. Wyatt snorted as Susan leaned back, trying to peer up at the demon. "Can we just get this over with?"

"Yeah, I got to agree with Brooke," Wyatt said, wrinkling his nose. "We're just gonna go after him, blow 'em up, and then go home. Why can't we just do it right now, since we're going to do it eventually?"

Susan stared at him, the glanced at Chris, her eyebrows raised. "Is this what you put up twenty-four hours a day?" she asked. "I feel sorry for you."

"Well, we can't just sit here, having energy balls thrown at us forever," Wyatt grumbled, glaring at her.

"No, definitely not," Chris agreed. "I'll distract him, you guys come up with a spell to vanquish him with." Without waiting to see if they would do as he suggested, he orbed out and reappeared behind him.

"Chris, look out!" Susan shouted, jumping to her feet.

He had barely materialised when he saw the two demons that had joined the first one. "Oh, no," he said as they tackled him to the ground. Wyatt let out a roar of anger, about to attack them when one of the demons held a knife to Chris's throat, stopping the elder Halliwell.

Susan looked horrified as she saw the scene in front of her. "Don't come after us, witches," the demon threatened. "Otherwise this will be his dying day." Her face turned white at the words. "Now, which one of you is the Dawson girl?"

Just as Susan was about to say something, Brooke stepped forward. "I am," she said firmly. It was a good thing that the demons' attention was focused on her, because Wyatt's mouth dropped open and Susan looked exasperated.

"No, she's not," Susan began.

"Brooke," Brooke replied, turning towards her. "You know it's the right thing to do. I know you were trying to protect me, but I have to do this." She turned back to the demon. "What do you want?"

"It's not me that is interested in you, it's my master," the demon replied. "He has a very high interest in you and wants you killed personally. So, you had better come to the abandoned mansion at the end of town or his blood will be on your hands."

Wyatt was having a hard time keeping a reign on his temper, his blue eyes were blazing. Susan was gripping Brooke's arm as she stared at Chris, terror written on her face.

Plunging into the telepathic connection that he shared with Wyatt, Chris said silently, _Wy, just try and relax, okay? We have to play things like this for a little bit. _

_You can't seriously be telling me to just let them take you, Chris!_ Wyatt practically yelled in their link. Chris winced slightly at the explosion that his brother was emitting. _For one thing, Mom would kill me. And for another, you're my brother! I'm not just gonna let you head straight into danger! They're gonna kill you!_

_Most likely,_ Chris agreed. _But listen, if they take me, we might be able to find out who's behind this and then stop these demons before they hurt somebody. _His brother was silent. _Wy, just trust me. _

_It's not you that I don't trust, little brother,_ Wyatt responded. His eyes flickered towards the demons. _It's them._

_Please? _Chris knew that if they went along with his plan, then there was a chance that all of them could get out of this alive.

Wyatt sighed. _If you don't get out of this alive, then I will never forgive you and I'm going to summon you back from the dead and—_

_All right, I get the picture,_ Chris said, rolling his eyes. _Have a little faith, why don't you? Take care of Susan, okay? She's already had a rough day. _

_And you say that you don't like her,_ Wyatt smirked as Chris was involuntarily shimmered away, leaving his brother alone with the two witches, without a plan to get him out of there.


	5. Two Captured

**Legacy: Pilot**

by Lady Dawson

Chapter Five: Two Captured

"Look, we know where they're at! Let's just go down there and blast them apart before they hurt Chris!" Wyatt was on a rant as he paced back and forth across his living room, glaring at the two girls. Brooke was sitting on the couch next to Susan, who was curled up with her hands hugging her knees and her head buried into them.

"We're going to rescue him, but we need to find out what they want with Susan first," Brooke said firmly. Wyatt sighed, knowing she was right, and reluctantly sat down. Susan's Book of Shadows lay open in front of them, straight on the page of the demon, where there was a vanquishing potion waiting to be made. Brooke had gone and retrieved in the moment that Chris had been kidnapped while Susan had burst into tears.

After about an hour or so of her feeling sorry for herself, Wyatt was getting real sick of it. He hated it when girls cried, anyway. All it made him do was feel like he had to comfort them or something, which he was not real good at doing. This was part of the reason why all of his old girlfriends had broken up with him in the first place.

Chris was probably right; he needed to work on that. How many times had his little brother told him that over the years?

"Fine," Wyatt grumbled, throwing himself down across from the girls. "Do you know what he wants with you?" he asked Susan, more annoyed that he meant to. She raised her head, her blue eyes swimming with tears, and shook her head. "Great, then we have absolutely nothing to go on. I don't get why they would come after you and not us. They've been attacking us for years, plus our mom and aunts before that."

"They've been attacking us, too, okay," Susan said quietly. "Ever since we got our powers. Mom unbound our powers when we were thirteen and ever since then, it's been an all-out war with them." She sighed, wiping away her tears. Brooke handed her a tissue, which she readily accepted. Once she had calmed down somewhat, she looked slightly concerned. "What I don't understand is why he didn't recognise me. I mean, plenty of demons know what we look like by now."

"Either way, we have to go rescue Chris, _now_," Wyatt said, standing up. "I'm going down there and I'll use whatever it takes to vanquish them before they even have a chance to hurt my brother."

"Wyatt, wait." Brooke stood up, taking his arm. "Maybe just one of us should go, in case this happens to be a trap."

"Of course it's a trap!" Wyatt yelled. "It's _always_ a trap! But that only means that we've got to prevent the trap." He glared at them; why were they so dead-set against rescuing Chris? "If you're not going to help me, then I'm going after him alone. So much for my thinking you two actually might care about us." He stormed out of the apartment, leaving the two girls shell-shocked at his outburst.

Not thinking twice, Wyatt orbed out to the abandoned mansion that the demon had mentioned to Brooke earlier. He didn't even bother to glance both ways to see if anybody was watching.

But he also failed to take into account that the demons might have been expecting this. The moment that he materialised, he felt a force field go up around him and he was thrown off of his feet, landing right next to his brother, who, apart from being tied to a chair, appeared unharmed. He looked exasperatedly towards Wyatt as the demons shimmered in, laughing.

"Ooh, excellent, now this should be interesting for our master," their earlier visitor said, still chuckling. "The twice-blessed so easily fell into our trap. Now, we have both the sons of the eldest. All we need left is the Dawson girl and that half-nymph witch. Then they can be destroyed before he arrives."

"Don't bet on it," Wyatt growled, as furious with himself as he was with the demons. How could he have fallen for this?

"Careful, witch," the demon warned. "You don't want to be upsetting our master; he'll make it so much worse for you. Now, tell me, where are the other two witches?"

"Scared away, like I told you," Chris snarled at them. The demons glanced at him before looking at Wyatt. It took all of Wyatt's willpower not to yell at them and to grind his teeth together, saying nothing. Keeping his mouth shut was not something the elder Halliwell was accustomed to doing.

"I suspect that some brotherly time will be enough to unhinge that tongue of yours," the demon said with a shrug. "And we have time, all the time in the world. But it is you two . . . whose time is slowly running out."

Before he vanished, the demon conjured a chair and rope, tying Wyatt to it before the elder Halliwell could react. He grunted as the ropes cut into his skin, but didn't respond. As the demons shimmered out, Chris turned towards Wyatt, anger in his green eyes.

"What do you think you were doing, coming in here without a plan?" he half-exploded onto him. Wyatt winced, not needing their telepathic link to hear Chris's inward rage. "Did you just leave the girls there, without any indication as to where you were going?"

"No, I'm pretty sure they know where I was going," Wyatt said sheepishly. And he _was_ pretty sure of that. How could they not know where it was that he was leaving to?

Chris rolled his eyes, shaking his head at the ceiling. "I swear, Wy, sometimes I wonder if you're even human."

"Nope," Wyatt said with a grin. "Half-witch and half-angel, you know. That's hardly human."

Giving him a wry smile, Chris let out a low chuckle. "Sarcasm does not become you," he told him.

"Oh, where would we be if I didn't continuously use my appalling wit?" Wyatt said, grinning. Chris snorted, glancing towards where Wyatt was trying to use his telekinesis to undo his brother's bonds.

"Don't bother," he said in a bored tone. "I already tried that. Our powers don't work inside this force field."

"Any ideas on shutting it off?" Wyatt asked, glancing around for a power source of some kind. If there was a force field, then there had to be a source that consolidated its power. And if there was, then all they had to do was find a way to cut it off.

"Yep," Chris said, nodding towards where a crystal was hanging above their heads. Wyatt hadn't noticed it before, but it was emitting the same red glow that the force field was producing. Not only that, but they were glowing in correspondence to one another. The glow held for the same amount of time on the force field as it held in the crystal. "That's the power source. If we can knock that out, then we can get out of here. The problem is getting to it, because without our powers, we can't knock it out."

Wyatt sighed. "So we need the girls," he said numbly. Chris nodded once, looking tiredly up at the crystal again. "This is an odd twist, isn't it? Guys waiting around for the girls to rescue them."

"Shut up!" Chris snapped. "Don't you realise that the moment that they come here, they're going to get sucked into the force field, too? Unless, by some miracle, they can't get here undetected."

--

"It'll be a miracle if we get there undetected," Susan said quietly as she stirred the pot that was boiling on the stove. Brooke sighed and nodded miserably as she wrote on a notepad. "But it's not like we've got any other choice. Wyatt is going to get _both_ of them killed."

"I told you that you weren't gonna be able to stay away from your Wiccan duty long," Brooke said in a singsong voice. Susan glared at her, thoroughly annoyed with her.

"Brooke Kathryn Murphy, I never once said that I was abandoning my duty as a witch. I was merely taking a leave of absence." Susan turned away from her best friend, adding another laurel leaf to the potion as it exploded on impact. "Okay, I think this thing is done."

"And I've got a couple of spells in case that doesn't work," Brooke said, shoving a few pieces of paper into her pocket. "Seriously, Sue, your potions are superb, but they have been known to malfunction a time or two."

Susan turned back to her, hands on her hips and blue eyes glaring. "Remind me why I'm friends with you?" she asked as she ladled the potion into some bottles, pocketing them. Brooke was far from forgiven about the whole 'cheating on her brother' thing, but now was not the time to be holding grudges. Not when there were lives at stake.

"I really am sorry," Brooke said quietly. Susan glanced at her, startled, and she shrugged. "Telepath, remember? And honey, you should really think about guarding your thoughts around me. Even I don't want to know that much about you."

"What do you mean?"

"Like the fact that you really like a certain neighbour of ours and you're thinking about him right now, as a matter of fact." Brooke grinned. "I never thought you'd go for brunettes."

"Shut up," Susan grumbled. "You are in no position to tease me right now and besides, we have to rescue them." Without another word, she walked across the Halliwells' kitchen. "Are we orbing or driving?"

"I think we should drive," Brooke said, biting her lip. "It might be slower, but to be honest, it might be safer."

Susan let out a soft breath. "I know," she said softly, closing her eyes. "I know." She could sense that the brothers were in trouble. Although how much, she wasn't sure. Her precognition powers were mediocre at best. And she could only sense things before they happened, not actually see what was happening. Like all forms of premonitions, it was a gift as well as a curse.

Opening her eyes again, she looked at Brooke. "I think you should drive, I'm not feeling up to it."

The telepath nodded, grabbing her jacket and purse as they headed out of the apartment, heading for whatever danger that the brothers were in. And as they closed the door, a young Whitelighter appeared from the hallway, watching the girls leave.

"Be careful, you two," Brandon said softly. He would keep an eye on them, but now was not the time for them to know. For now, he would only watch them. The time was soon, but not yet. Not quite . . .

--

Brooke slowed to a stop about a block away from the mansion, climbing out of the car. Susan shut the door as she stepped onto the ground, glancing up at the mansion with distaste. "You sense that?" she said softly. The telepath looked at her. "Evil . . . it lurks around here. Can practically cut it with a knife. We'd better be careful."

"Don't need to tell me that," Brooke muttered as the headed up the walkway. They were about to step on the first step when Susan halted, her blue eyes narrowing as she turned.

Looking around, Brooke saw a kid about seventeen years old approaching them. He wore the same black clothes that the demons had been wearing, but she sensed that this was no demon. He was more than half witch, with powers that were aligned with good. But if that were true, then what was he doing here?

"Not that way," he said softly. He was tall with brown hair that framed a determined face and piercing eyes that seemed to look right through them. His gaze was on Susan entirely, as though fascinated by her. This definitely unnerved the witchlighter, though, as she shifted uncomfortably.

But he seemed familiar, though . . . something about him definitely was familiar, though Brooke was definitely certain that she had never once seen this kid before in her life. All the same, though, she knew that there was something there . . . in his eyes as he watched Susan.

"What do you mean, not that way?" Brooke demanded, staring at him. "Who are you?"

"I'm a friend and that's all you need to know right now," he replied, gesturing for them to follow him. Brooke glanced at Susan, who hesitated. "Come on, I'll help you find the brothers. But you can't go that way, there's an alarm that'll set off if you go anywhere near."

"How do we know we can trust you?" Susan asked softly, studying the kid carefully.

"You don't," he answered. "But what choice do you have? If you don't do something, and soon, then Chris and Wyatt are going to die."

Susan closed her eyes, opened them and looked at Brooke. The telepath didn't need her power to know what the witchlighter was telling her. For the moment, she was going to trust this kid.

"Lead the way," Susan said quietly.


	6. Potentially a Problem

**Legacy: Pilot**

by Lady Dawson

Chapter Six: Potentially a Problem

Susan stepped through the building, following the kid as he led them through an elaborate set of corridors and staircases. "Hey, where are we going?" she asked. He didn't even look towards her.

"To where they've got your friends at," he replied, quickening his pace. "It's in this room that's been watched over, so you won't have much time once you get in there. And be careful not to step through the red line; if you get caught in there, you'll be stuck without your powers."

"What do you mean?"

"All powers, demon or witch, go dead inside that circle. That's why the Halliwells haven't been able to get out from there. And trust me, they'll have you tied to a chair so fast you won't be able to get out." He looked worried as he hurried up the stairs.

"Why are you helping us?" Brooke demanded, looking at him in annoyance. "Who are you?"

Once again, he looked at Susan and there was that longing look in his eyes. As though he wanted to tell her something, but couldn't. She couldn't help but think that there was something about him that seemed . . .

Well, familiar.

"Believe me, Brooke, you'd never believe me," he told her softly. "You would never believe the truth if I told you."

Without another word, he looked away and pointed up ahead towards where there was a locked door. Just by looking it, Susan got the eerie feeling that she'd received when she'd seen the abandoned mansion. With her precognition power, she could sense evil sometimes. Especially when it was exploding from the place like it was.

Susan hurried forward the moment that she saw the door, Brooke behind her, and pushed open the door, not noticing that the kid vanished from behind them once they were in the room. Both Wyatt and Chris looked around at them the moment that they entered, looking both relieved and anxious as they looked towards the girls.

"Thank the gods!" Susan exclaimed. Apart from being tied to chairs, both brothers appeared to be unharmed. "Are you guys okay?" She looked towards Chris as she stepped towards him.

"DON'T!" Chris yelled and she jumped, startled. He calmed down. "Sorry. Don't step over the line otherwise you'll get sucked in, too."

"Yeah, we know, that kid told us about it," Brooke said, glancing over her shoulder. "Hey, where did he go?"

Looking around, Susan noticed that the kid had completely disappeared. "I guess he left. That's weird," she mused. "But never mind that, we've got bigger problems. Got an ideas on shutting this thing off?" she asked, looking around them.

"Look up," Chris told her. Susan turned her attention upwards and saw a giant crystal hanging above their heads, glowing red before fading and then repeating the same cycle. "That's the power source, you've got to destroy it to break the shield around us."

Brooke gave a curious look at them before glancing upwards. "They come up with new ideas all the time, don't they?" she commented. Wyatt snorted and Susan rolled her eyes. With a grin, Brooke looked towards Susan. "You think you can hit it, Sue?"

"We'll find out," Susan replied, backing up. Plunging into the depths of her power, she summoned up lighting. As it crackled from her fingertips, she flung a fully-powered bolt towards the crystal.

The moment that it made contact, Susan gasped, feeling the strength of the crystal as she tried to destroy it. _This thing's more powerful than I thought, Brooke,_ she directed her thoughts towards the telepath. _I need your help._

_I'm right here, buddy, _Brooke replied, gripping her shoulder tightly. Through her telepathy, she managed to amplify Susan's power and the crystal began to crack slightly. The shield around the brothers shook just as demons burst into the room.

"How did you get in here?" one of them yelled, but it was barely even audible over the storm. "Stop!"

He ran to stop the two witches as the crystal began to shatter but vines whipped up and wrapped around the demon, immobilizing him. "Nice one!" Susan yelled at Brooke, who grinned. "Who else wants to try it?"

She lessened her lightning enough so she could throw a well-aimed bolt towards the demon, who howled as he was vanquished. The demons gulped and looked towards each other.

Ignoring them now, Susan turned her attention back towards the crystal and used what power she had left to blast the crystal to smithereens. Almost instantly, the crystal and shield shattered.

"NO!" The demon ran forward as Susan staggered, weak after using so much power at one time. Brooke moved to cover Susan, using her powers over the element earth to fight the demons. "I'm not going to let you get away with this! He's counting on us to get all four of you!"

Conjuring a fireball, he flung it at Brooke, who had to dive out of the way in order to avoid it, but Susan was still too weary to get out of the way herself.

"OH, NO YOU DON'T!"

Chris had used telekinesis on the bonds the moment that the shield had broken and was now racing towards Susan, grabbing her and orbing her out of the way. She gasped at the strange sensation of involuntary orbing as they materialised a few feet away.

"Thanks," she gasped as he kept a firm hand on her to keep her standing up, which was a good thing because she could barely support herself.

"No problem," he said, anger in his voice as he looked towards the two demons. Wyatt joined them, rubbing his wrists as he glared at the demons, who backed away.

"Don't kill us," one of them begged. "We're . . . we're just obeying orders." The witches all looked at each other before returning their attention towards the demons.

"Who sent you?" Susan wanted to know.

The demon's eyes widened as he stared at her. "Susan Dawson?" he asked, looking towards Brooke, who smiled innocently. With a small nod, Susan stared him down. "I don't know."

"Why don't you try telling us the truth this time?" Wyatt said menacingly, taking a step closer.

Looking fearfully at him, the demon opened his mouth, probably about to speak, when a ferocious howl echoed through the corridor. The demon screamed as both he and his partner were, however involuntarily, were shimmered away by something. Or someone.

Wyatt cursed the moment that the demons vanished. "We almost had them!" he complained, glancing at the others. "Now what are we going to do?"

"I don't think, that if we went after them, there would be anything left to find, Wyatt," Susan mumbled, laying her head onto Chris's shoulder due to her exhaustion. From his expression, he didn't seem to mind at all. "Their boss obviously knew that they were about to rat him or her out to us. Which means that he's probably going to take care of them himself."

"But who?" Brooke asked, looking towards Susan worriedly. "Who would be after us like this?"

--

"You almost sold me out to the witches," a menacing voice said from the corner of the room. The demons stood trembling within the same force field that the brothers had been trapped in before. A crystal hummed overhead, holding them prisoner. "You almost betrayed me."

"Sir, please," one of them begged. "They were going to kill us if we didn't say anything. Believe me, sir, we were only going to give them a false name. We wouldn't have betrayed you, my lord."

"I find that very difficult to believe," the man that stood in the shadows, hidden from view, said. "You have always been fearful of my reign and now I shall, as your gracious master, will put an end to your suffering. Don't you worry, though, I shall take care of the witches."

"My lord, I beg you!" But before they could summon up any more pleadings or begging, the man shot a stream of fire towards the force field, which lowered as he did so, and plunged onto the two demons. They screamed as the fire penetrated them, engulfing them in its heat and pain, before they finally exploded.

When the demons vanished, the crystal moved upward, hiding itself into the ceiling and a tile move into place to conceal it. The man walked into the light, revealing himself to be a human of thirty-some odd years. Dark hair framed a callous face with cold, emotionless eyes as he sat down at the desk that stood proudly in the office.

"It's your turn now," he said, glancing towards the demon who had stood silently within the room during the execution. "And I warn you not to fail or betray me because that will only end up with you facing the same end that they did." He nodded towards the place where the vanquished demons had stood.

His new general, however, wasn't abashed. "You will not have to worry about me, my lord," he said with a bow before he shimmered out.

"Good," the man said softly. "Lights." They clicked on and the room was illuminated, revealing to be a simple office with various books on law standing on the bookshelf in the corner. There was a painting of the man with his wife and son behind him.

As footsteps were heard in the hallway, he looked up. "Bobby!" he called, his voice commanding. The footsteps halted. "Come in here!"

The door opened and his son appeared, looking weary. Bobby Connelly looked at his father Peter as he sat in the desk. "What's up, Dad?" he asked. "I've got some stuff to take care of."

"Where were you tonight?" Peter asked, staring at his son intently. Although he was trying not to flinch or show any sign of guilt, Bobby knew that his father was probably well aware that he was probably not where he was supposed to be.

Which was completely wrong; he had been where he was supposed to be, but hadn't been what he was supposed to be _doing_. Bobby knew that he was taking a huge risk, helping Susan and Brooke sneak into the mansion to rescue the Halliwell brothers, but he couldn't just not help them. If they'd gone the way that the demons wanted them to, they would've gotten themselves killed.

And that was something Bobby couldn't live with.

Keeping a blank look on his face, Bobby asked, "What do you mean? I was at the mansion with guard duty, like you told me to. Why?"

Peter shook his head. "No reason. Those demons that almost betrayed came up with some idea that you helped the witches into the mansion. I should've known they were lying to save their own skins. Go on, son, I'm sorry I bothered you with such useless questioning."

Bobby shrugged. "No problem. When's Mom coming back, anyway?"

"She should be due home the day after tomorrow, after she finished up with this next assignment," Peter answered. "But she's got another one right after that, so she won't be home for more than a few days."

"Right," Bobby said softly, hating the thought of both of his parents working for demonic forces. What had happened to them, anyway, to turn from protectors of the innocent to evil, twisted assassins? "Good night, Dad."

As Bobby headed out of the office and upstairs, a figure appeared from the shadows and Brandon stared after the kid as he climbed the stairs.

"This potentially could be a problem," he mused as he orbed out of the house without a trace.


	7. On Top of the World

**Legacy: Pilot**

by Lady Dawson

Chapter Seven: On Top of the World

After they'd taken the girls home and Susan had recovered after using up almost all of her strength blasting apart the crystal, Chris suggested that they all take a night out on the town. Which meant that they were going to their mother's club, P3.

"Hey, Joe," Chris said to the guy at the gate, who waved them through before stopping the girls. "Oh, don't worry about them. They're with us." Brooke raised an eyebrow as Joe rolled his eyes, letting the girls through. "You guys just can't drink anything if you're underage, though," he added. "Mom would have a fit."

"Your mom owns this place?" Brooke asked as they walked through the crowd, Wyatt holding onto her hand rather possessively. Chris noticed that Susan was looking uncomfortable by that, but didn't say anything. He squeezed her hand briefly and she smiled reassuringly at him.

"Yep, since before I was born," Wyatt said with a grin. "Trust me, we were definitely cool for having a mom who owned one of the hottest clubs in town during high school."

Susan smiled briefly. "Yeah, I'll bet," she said, shaking her head as Brooke and Wyatt headed off onto the dance floor. "Does water count as drinking?" she asked, directing the question towards Chris.

He feigned thoughtfulness as they headed up towards the counter, where his mom was taking care of some customers. "Well . . . I think maybe you'll get away with it," he said, frowning. Susan shook her head, though she was amused. "Maybe . . . I might have to pull some strings with Mom, though. You never know."

"Pull some strings with what?" Piper had appeared, looking happy to see him. She walked out from behind the counter, greeting him. "Hi, sweetie. It's good to see you. Hi there," she added, spotting Susan standing next to her son. She gave Chris a questioning look.

Chris immediately introduced them. "Mom, this is my new neighbour, Susan Dawson," he said. "Susan, this is my mom, Piper Halliwell."

"Hi, it's nice to meet you," Susan said politely, shaking his mother's hand. Piper smiled back.

"It's good to meet you, too," she said. "I apologise now for any mischief that my boys might have caused you." This got a laugh out of both Susan and Chris and Piper grinned.

"Oh, don't worry, Mrs. Halliwell," Susan said once she had recovered. "I'm just as likely to get _them_ into trouble as they are me." Chris smirked as Piper frowned in confusion.

"She's one of us," he said in an undertone to his mother. She instantly understood and smiled at Susan more broadly.

"Well, hopefully not too much," she said. "I really hate the thought of you boys getting into too much trouble. Honestly, maybe I shouldn't have given into you and your brother getting an apartment on your own so easily . . ."

"Mom, relax," Chris groaned. She had this meltdown about once a week and it drove him crazy. Beside him, Susan was grinning.

Piper shook her head. "Well, honey, if you decide you want to come back home, don't hesitate," she ordered him. Chris sighed as the bartenders called his mother's attention. "Well, I got to get back to work. You two have fun and do not get anything besides water," she added warningly.

"It's not me you've got to worry about Mom," Chris pointed out as he slipped under the counter and got them both waters. "It's Wyatt."

This made his mother sigh as she walked away and Chris walked back to Susan, handing her a glass of water. "There you go," he said, taking a seat next to her. "Stop grinning."

"What? It's nice, having a mother who's worried about you twenty-four/seven," Susan told him. Chris shook his head as a slow song started and he glanced towards the dance floor.

"Want to dance?" he asked as the first chords of "I Want You to Need Me" by Celine Dion began to fill the air. She looked at him and nodded.

Chris grinned as he got to his feet, holding his hand out to her. She laughed as she took it, allowing him to lead her out onto the dance floor. Taking her hand into his, he guided her free hand onto her shoulder as other couples began to pair up, swirling to the music.

As they slowly moved together, Chris felt the worry and anxiety melt away as he stared down into Susan's blue eyes. They were so clear, he thought as he looked into them. He felt as though he could lose himself if he looked into them too long. They were like too pools of water and every drop was different. She was different from any girl that he had ever met before, he knew. Maybe it was because he didn't have to hide his secret from her, but Chris knew better. He knew that it was something closer to the heart.

For those four minutes that the song played across the club, Chris felt as though they were the only two people in the world. Neither one of them needed to speak, because they only needed to look at each other in their eyes to say everything they needed to.

She felt it, too, he knew. It showed in her eyes. Pure happiness, mixed with some fear and anxiety, but the delight showed on her face as she smiled up at him as the song slowly ended, but the two didn't let go of each other.

"Come with me," Chris whispered. Susan nodded as they left the club quietly, Chris sending a silent message to Wyatt, telling him where he was going.

Once they were safely outside with nobody around, Chris took Susan's arm and orbed her up to his favourite spot in the world: the top of the Golden Gate Bridge. Susan didn't seem to mind the orbing this time, though he had probably taken her by surprise the last time he'd done it.

"Oh, wow," she whispered, staring all around them. He grinned, looking around them as he remembered when he'd come up here the first time. Seeing the city this way, from a whole new perspective, was pretty incredible. "Chris, this is amazing! It's like we're on top of the world. Do you come up here a lot?"

"Yeah," Chris said with a grin as he shoved his hands into his pockets. "It's a good place to think and . . . to figure things out." He looked at her as she stared over the river, the river and heavens mixing to form everything in between. "This is my favourite spot in the world."

She looked up at him as he moved closer to her, feeling her shiver slightly. Pulling his jacket off, he wrapped it around her shoulders.

"Thanks," she said, smiling at him.

"Don't mention it."

"No . . ." Susan shook her head. "Well, obviously thanks for this, but what I meant was . . ." She took a deep breath. "Thanks for saving my life today." Her blue eyes looked up into his green ones and Chris felt a shiver run through him.

"You saved me, too," Chris pointed out. "We're even."

Susan bit her lip. "I'm not used to this," she said quietly, averting her gaze from Chris's.

"What?"

"People liking me for me," Susan replied softly. "Usually it was because I was Ryan Dawson's sister or Brooke Murphy's best friend. Not because I was me, you know?"

"Yeah, I know the feeling," Chris sighed. "Sometimes it can be a bit wearing, being known only as Wyatt Halliwell's little brother or Piper Halliwell's youngest son." His green eyes turned towards her. "But at the end of the day, I wouldn't have it any other way. They're my family and I'd do anything for them."

She glanced towards him, something flickering behind her eyes. "I hope that nothing happens to them," she said quietly. "Bad things shouldn't happen to good people."

Chris touched her arm and she looked up at him, startled. "Good things happen to good people, too," he told her softly. "Maybe that's what led you here. Maybe it was so you could find some happiness here." She shrugged, seeming unable to tear her gaze away from him. "Look, Susan, I don't know what happened to your family, but I'm not going to pry. You can tell me on your own terms, not mine, not anybody else's. But I want you to know that you can trust me and tell me anything." He prayed she believed that.

Her blue eyes swarmed with tears as she blinked up at him. "You're a good person, Chris Halliwell," she said softly as he stepped closer to her. She didn't move away as their gazes locked, but he could feel her trembling underneath his touch.

"Don't be afraid," he whispered.

"I'm not afraid."

"You're shaking."

"No, I'm not," she whispered as he leaned closer to her. They were standing so close, now, he could see the unshed tears clinging to her eyelashes, like dewdrops in the early morning. She was so unlike any person that he had ever met, yet destiny had chosen a harsh life for her.

"It's okay," he told her, brushing a strand of hair out from her face. "It's okay, Susan."

It seemed as though some magic were at work, because they were coming even closer together now. And then her lips touched his, warmth filling in between the two as fireworks seemed to explode within him.

Chris wrapped his arms around her as she allowed herself to be wrapped up within his embrace, her eyelids fluttering closed as they kissed, two young witches standing atop of the highest point of the city, filled with happiness and bliss of the moment. And at that moment, nothing else seemed to matter.

And as the two witches shared that kiss that seemed like it lasted much longer and time seemed to stop for so much longer than a moment, the stars twinkled overhead with approval and a shooting star whizzed overhead.

--Fade to Black--

End Credits

Guest stars:

Jack Devonport as Peter Connelly

Shawn Ashmore as Bobby Connelly

Erik von Detten as Ryan Dawson (in flashback)

Kathy Ireland as Celandine Dawson (in flashback)

Holly Marie Combs as Piper Halliwell


End file.
